1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of jewelry settings and, more particularly, to the field of jewelry settings for mounting jewelry, where the setting is substantially invisible.
2. Description of Related Art
Diamonds and other gemstones are frequently mounted in various ways to produce different optical impressions and different optical effects. For example, one popular type of mounting includes an invisible setting, namely a setting that is not visible from the outer face of the gemstone. Invisible settings are particularly used when a plurality of such gemstones are mounted contiguously to each other to create the appearance of a single large gemstone. Many invisible settings have been devised for this purpose. The typical invisible settings in use today generally include prongs or the like received in grooves or notches formed in the pavilion of each gemstone so as to mount the gemstone with the crown facing outwardly, with the pavilion facing inwardly, and with the prongs concealed by the girdle.
Invisible settings often require the use of stones of substantial size so to enable the forming of the grooves or notches in the pavilion of each stone, which, obviously, make the article of jewelry more costly. It should be noted that the groove cut might weaken the stone, making the stone liable to breaking, hence one reason for the use of larger size stones. Determining the placement (position) of the groove is complex because if the groove is positioned too high on the pavilion, it weakens the stone, and if the groove is too low, then the setting will show (no longer an invisible setting). Further, the groove cut “tortures” the stone because it uses metal blade that turns at very high revolutions per minute, generating a high level of heat, which may cause the stone to lose its luster. In addition, labor required for the formation of the grooves in the pavilion of each stone adds additional labor costs to the entire manufacturing process. Finally, most invisible settings are made specific to a specific gemstone cut such as, for example, the princess cut, which is limiting.
Accordingly, in light of the current state of the art and the drawbacks to current settings mentioned above, a need exists for an invisible stone setting that would not require a large sized stone, would not add substantial labor costs to the entire setting process, and would allow for setting of any shaped gemstone cut.